How Big Oil is Fueling the Insurance Crisis And Why State Policymakers Should Act

The document examines how climate change is creating a home insurance crisis in the U.S., characterized by skyrocketing premiums and widespread policy non-renewals. It asserts that 'Big Oil' companies, who knew about the risks of fossil fuels as early as 1954, are responsible for these conditions. The report highlights specific state-level crises in Florida, California, and Hawaiʻi, and advocates for policy solutions—such as subrogation and legislative surcharges—to shift the financial burden from policyholders to the fossil fuel industry.

• Climate change is driving a significant increase in home insurance costs and a decrease in availability across the U.S., with premiums rising by an average of 24% over the last three years and rates increasing in 95% of U.S. ZIP codes between 2021 and 2024.
• The insurance crisis is leading to a rise in uninsured homeowners, with 12% of Americans lacking home insurance in 2024, compared to 5% in 2019. This is compounded by insurers withdrawing from entire states and communities, particularly in hurricane-prone Florida, Louisiana, and North Carolina, and wildfire-prone areas of California, Oregon, and Idaho.
• There is a systemic risk that the insurance crisis will trigger a broader financial crisis, as the inability to secure home insurance prevents homeowners from obtaining mortgages, potentially leading to a 'climate-induced credit crunch' and declining property values.
• Fossil fuel companies had internal knowledge of the climate impacts of their products as early as 1954 and predicted global warming in the 1970s and 1980s, yet they engaged in a decades-long disinformation campaign to deceive the public and protect profits.
• Several U.S. states are pursuing or proposing mechanisms to make the fossil fuel industry pay for insurance costs: Hawaiʻi has endorsed the use of subrogation to sue polluters; California's Senate Bill 222 aims to shift the burden of increased costs to fossil fuel companies; and Connecticut proposed a surcharge on insurers that underwrite fossil fuel projects.

APA

Center for Climate Integrity (2025). How Big Oil is Fueling the Insurance Crisis And Why State Policymakers Should Act. https://climateintegrity.org/uploads/media/Fueling-the-Insurance-Crisis-2025.pdf

Chicago

Center for Climate Integrity. How Big Oil is Fueling the Insurance Crisis And Why State Policymakers Should Act. 2025. https://climateintegrity.org/uploads/media/Fueling-the-Insurance-Crisis-2025.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=Center for Climate Integrity |title=How Big Oil is Fueling the Insurance Crisis And Why State Policymakers Should Act |date=August 2025 |url=https://climateintegrity.org/uploads/media/Fueling-the-Insurance-Crisis-2025.pdf |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{centerforclimateintegrity2025how, author = {{Center for Climate Integrity}}, title = {{How Big Oil is Fueling the Insurance Crisis And Why State Policymakers Should Act}}, institution = {Center for Climate Integrity}, year = {2025}, month = aug, url = {https://climateintegrity.org/uploads/media/Fueling-the-Insurance-Crisis-2025.pdf}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }